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Thursday, January 3, 2013

POPLARVILLE — Pearl River Community College quarterback Dylan Favre has signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the University of Tennessee-Martin in Martin, Tenn. Favre, a high school All-American at St. Stanislaus College in Bay St. Louis, signed with the Skyhawks Dec. 19 after playing the 2012 season at PRCC. “I’m thrilled to be with Tennessee-Martin and looking forward to getting on campus and getting to work,” Favre said. Favre will be eligible for spring training and has two years of eligibility. “I like the way the Skyhawks and Coach (Jason) Simpson run their offense. They run the spread and like an up tempo offense. Some of the terminology will be different but the foundation is what I am familiar with.” Favre completed 59 percent (191 of 323 with 15 interceptions) for the Wildcats this past fall for an 11th best 2,024 yards (224.9 per game) in school history. His 16 touchdown passes were ranked 10th best. In addition, he rushed for 131 yards (71 carries) for two TDs. PRCC finished its 2012 campaign at 3-6 overall and 2-6 in the MACJC South Division. Favre’s passing numbers ranked 15th in the NJCAA and fourth in the MACJC. Simpson led the Skyhawks to an 8-3 record this past fall. He graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi in 1995 and played football for a season with Dylan’s father, Jeff, in Hattiesburg. Jeff Byrd, UTM’s defensive coordinator, is a 1989 USM graduate. The Skyhawks graduated their quarterback this year. Derek Carr threw for 3,276 yards and 31 touchdowns on 264-of-415 passing with just eight interceptions. Carr will be a graduate assistant this fall and that caught Favre’s attention. “It will be a huge help having him (Carr) on the sidelines. He understands the system extremely well and can help me tremendously. UTM protects their quarterback well on film and they like to throw the ball a bunch. I am excited about the opportunity.” Simpson says Favre is expected to compete for the Skyhawk’s starting job immediately. At St. Stanislaus, Favre set 21 school records and nine state records his senior year as he led the Rocks to the 2009 Class 4A state title. He was named Mr. Football in Mississippi, Gatorade Player of the Year, the game MVP in the Bernard Blackwell All-Start Classic and the National Player of the Year by O-D Sports. Favre led the nation in passing yards (5,589), touchdown passes (63), touchdown responsibility (81) and total offense (6,854) his senior year. His single season total offense mark is the second best mark in high school football history. The Skyhawks play in the West Division of the Ohio Valley Conference and they are a Division I member of the FCS. The other members of the West Division are Austin Peay State University, Eastern Illinois University, Murray State University, Southeast Missouri State University and Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. The East Division members are Belmont University, Eastern Kentucky University, Jacksonville State University, Morehead State University, Tennessee State University and Tennessee Tech. “My time at PRCC has been good for me. While this past season wasn’t the year we expected to have, we learned a tremendous amount. I played the majority of the year banged up. I am better now and looking forward to getting back on the field. I appreciate (PRCC) Coach Tim Hatten for sticking with me and I wish him the very best.” Hatten resigned the Wildcat post in November. Former PRCC defensive coordinator William Jones, who left The River in 2008 to assume the same position at East Mississippi CC in Scooba, was hired to succeed Hatten. Favre signed with Mississippi State out of high school and spent two seasons with the Bulldogs before transferring to PRCC this past fall. He will report to the UTM campus on January 9 to begin the spring semester.